Today’s the first day of Fall. Autumn. The Autumnal Equinox. Depending on the year, the first day of Fall falls on either September 22nd or 23rd. Either way, the Autumnal Equinox marks a point in Space where the Earth’s axis (North-South Poles) is neutral, pointing neither towards or away from the Sun. Basically, the number of hours for day and night are equal.
If we’re talking space and exploration… Almost 40 years ago, the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster occurred on January 28, 1986. I remember watching the Challenger launch in real-time on ABC News. (It was one of three national channels on my family TV before 24-7 news and cable/satellite/streaming apps.) The U.S. of A. anxiously anticipated this launch. Christa McAuliffe was the first teacher to be launched into space. She was selected as the NASA Teacher in Space Finalist and prepared to teach lessons from Outer Space. Christa was a history teacher at Concord High School in Concord, NH. Unfortunately, an explosion in an O-ring on the rocket booster caused the shuttle to explode 73 seconds after launch. It’s image is seared into the minds of everyone watching that morning. Bless the seven astronauts onboard that day.
For obvious reasons, NASA overhauled their safety program after the Challenger disaster. The first space shuttle to return after the 32-month hiatus was the Space Shuttle Discovery on September 29, 1988. Thirty-seven years ago this month. Named for Captain James Cook and Henry Hudson’s ships, the Discovery is unique. It’s considered the “Return to Flight” shuttle after the Challenger explosion in 1986 and the Columbia disaster in 2003. However, Discovery had been in flight since 1984. It’s one of five orbiters to be built by and for NASA, and is considered the oldest surviving orbiter having landed its’ 39th and final mission on March 9, 2011. Now the Discovery is permanently on display in the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.
Discovery’s varied missions, totaling 8,783 flight hours, ranged from resupplying and crew rotation on the Mir and International Space Stations to assisting with the Hubble Space Telescope and other various scientific and defense operations.
In person, the Space Shuttle Discovery is beyond impressive. Towering over 6-foot tall Son A, the shuttle assembly, including the rocket boosters, is about 184 feet long with a wingspan of 78 feet. The main space shuttle itself is about 122 feet in length. Without a doubt, Sons A, B and I were utterly amazed by the shuttle’s size. But never having been up close and personal with a shuttle, I was surprised by its’ cosmetic appearance. Resembling fish scales, protective silica tiles called heat panels cover any extreme heat areas and vary in thickness from 1 to 5 inches. Re-entry temperatures back into Earth’s atmosphere can be as fiery as 2,300 degrees F. Other thinner tiles made from Reinforced Carbon-Carbon (RCC) protect the shuttle’s wing leading edges, undercarriage, and nose cone. Surprisingly enough, these RCC tiles are only about 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick!
Since it’s now technically pumpkin spice season on this First Day of Fall, I feel obligated to post these Chewy Pumpkin Toffee Cookies. The buttery rich toffee bits in these tender, yet chewy, cookies compliment the earthy, spicy, sweet pumpkin dough. You could get away with using white or semi-sweet chocolate chips, but the caramelized toasty-ness toffee provides can not be beat. Consider this as you stare up at the heavens on a Fall night, eating one of these cookies…you never know who or what’s floating around our Earth!
Chewy Pumpkin Toffee Cookies
A sprinkle of flaky salt balances out these chewy, pumpkin-spicy, toffee-rific Fall cookies!
- Prep Time: 15-20 Minutes
- Cook Time: 16-18 Minutes
- Total Time: About 1 Hour
- Yield: About 20 Large Cookies 1x
Ingredients
1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 c. brown sugar, packed
1 c. granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla
3 drops yellow food gel
1 drop red food gel
1/2 c. pumpkin puree
2–1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt (table, kosher, or sea)
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1–8 oz. bag toffee bits (I used Heath brand.)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 325 degree F. Line 2-3 baking sheets with parchment or Silpat liners. Set aside.
Using a standing or handheld mixer, cream butter and sugars together until light and fluffy. Add egg, vanilla, and food gel. Beat until combined. Add pumpkin puree and beat again for about 30 seconds.
Whisk together all dry ingredients, except for the toffee bits. Add flour mixture to the butter mixture. Stir until just combined. Using a spatula, hand-stir in the toffee bits until evenly combined. Use a #20 or #24 (3 T.) ice cream scoop, portion dough about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 16-18 minutes or until edges are set and centers are slightly soft. Remove cookies to a wire rack to cool. Sprinkle cookies with flaky sea or kosher salt.
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